OldSkoo swag

Gruyas de buena suerte #japan #mexico (Taken with instagram)

I had no idea these animals even existed, but they’re all over the resort here in Mexico. They’re awesome, me and my sister have been calling them Monkey Cats. 

My hometown…

Copper bottoms for Mexico…

…is a great thing for Mexico because Japan has beaten Argentina on Mexican soil (even if they’re just kids). Mexico was eliminated in the past 2 big-people World Cups by Argentina at the exact same bracket each time. Let these young people inspire the Tri on the long path to Brazil.

Meanwhile I root for Japan, Mexico, all the African teams and everybody who beats Argentina. Honestly just because your meat is good doesn’t mean you can win all the soccer and polo, okay?

:D

Mexico players sent home after scandal:

“The Mexican Football Federation (FMF) confirmed that Jonathan dos Santos, Nestor Vidrio, Javier Cortes, David Cabrera, Nestor Claderon, Israel Jimenez, Jorge Hernandez and Marco Fabian had all been sent home for violating team rules but would not go into further detail”

I wonder what Gio’s thinking. He was actually pretty upset whenever his brother wasn’t called up for a tournament. And when he was finally called up for Copa America he was stoked! And then his brother just HAD to go and do something like this.

OldSkoo swag

La Evolucion Silenciosa (The Silent Evolution) Post 2.

In love with this map by Scott C and Bob Odenkirk .  Two of my favorite people combine their talents in this epic map!  I’d love to see more team-ups like this!  

La Evolucion Silenciosa (The Silent Evolution) Post 2.

It is made from a special cement that is 10 times harder than the normal kind and it has a neutral PH (favorable to corals), and the statues are anchored to a barren rocky seabed 10 meters below the water’s surface.

Photo

An American businessman was standing at the pier of a small coastal Mexican village when a small boat with just one fisherman docked. Inside the small boat were several large yellowfin tuna. The American complimented the Mexican on the quality of his fish.

“How long it took you to catch them?” The American asked.

“Only a little while.” The Mexican replied.

“Why don’t you stay out longer and catch more fish?” The American then asked.

“I have enough to support my family’s immediate needs.” The Mexican said.

“But,” The American then asked, “What do you do with the rest of your time?”

The Mexican fisherman said, “I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, take a siesta with my wife, Maria, stroll into the village each evening where I sip wine and play guitar with my amigos, I have a full and busy life, senor.”

The American scoffed, “I am a Harvard MBA and could help you. You should spend more time fishing and with the proceeds you buy a bigger boat, and with the proceeds from the bigger boat you could buy several boats, eventually you would have a fleet of fishing boats.”

“Instead of selling your catch to a middleman you would sell directly to the consumers, eventually opening your own can factory. You would control the product, processing and distribution. You would need to leave this small coastal fishing village and move to Mexico City, then LA and eventually NYC where you will run your expanding enterprise.”

The Mexican fisherman asked, “But senor, how long will this all take?”

To which the American replied, “15-20 years.”

“But what then, senor?”

The American laughed and said, “That’s the best part. When the time is right you would announce an IPO (Initial Public Offering) and sell your company stock to the public and become very rich, you would make millions.”

“Millions, senor? Then what?”

The American said slowly, “Then you would retire. Move to a small coastal fishing village where you would sleep late, fish a little, play with your kids, take a siesta with your wife, stroll to the village in the evenings where you could sip wine and play your guitar with your amigos…”

- I really loved this story ever since my teacher read it to me so i just had to post it. Credits to the original writer** 

poor usa. lol.

cenote in yucatan

ruins of chichen itza

Progresso

Mazatlan, Mexico.

- Flickr -

Then, we visited some really pretty lakes.

Nacional de Mexico, No. 739

Photographed by Hugo Brehme, ca. 1905-1920

The Garbage Dumps of Tijuana, Mexico

CA Bipartisan effort 2end Mexico crossborder truck program-SanDiego Examiner.com http://ping.fm/JMOcu WETHEPEOPLE immigration madeinUSA

Plane Friendly

A journey to Mexico really begins in the waiting area for your flight.  Mexicans take friendliness to a new level by British standards.  After asking a lady what time she thought we would arrive in Mexico City, a conversation ensued in which, 15 minutes in, she gave me the phone number of her cousin who lives near San Cristobal de Las Casas (now the first point on my trip after Mexico City) and told me to phone him.  Now, am I wrong on this?  If I was flying in the opposite direction and met a Brit who had a cousin living in Oxford and told me to visit him - I would probably think he was a bit nuts.  Am I a cynic?  Unfriendly?  Or just British?

Once on the plane a mexican man pointed to the empty seat between us: “¡Tenemos suerte!” he said (we’re lucky!) and we started talking.  Turns out his daughter who was next to him was half mexican, half-irish, so any words or meanings that were getting lost were translated by her.  By the end of the flight I had an e-mail address and a firm invitation to go rafting in Veracruz (where they are from).  Don’t get me wrong, I’ve had some belters of a conversation with randoms on a train, but I’ve never invited them to come and stay!

Taxi Farely Frightening

It’s probably best to keep your eyes closed and your seatbelt firmly on during a taxi-ride from the airport to wherever your “final destination” is, or at least that’s what I did once the speedometer had reached three-quarters of the way round the dial and the taxi driver was overtaking a car by squeezing through a space between another two on the right.  And this was using the “official” taxi rank at the airport: “Sitio 300”, not some maverick outfit.  At M$152 (£7.90), it’s a tad on the expensive side, especially when compared with the metro (M$3 - 16p) but it’s the safest and most secure way of getting to where you’re staying and when you’ve got a ton of luggage, laptop and other valuables, it’s well worth the money, though the chances of death are probably ten-fold. 

New Hostel, New Sensations

The thing I always notice first about a new country is the smell.  Warm countries definitely smell different and as I was speeding past tall neon signs and even taller construction sites, the smell reminded me of Bangkok.  It’s got a strange sweetness to it that’s more pungent than pleasant, but not intolerable until you get the whiff of a drain - which happens a lot more than it does in the UK.  The sensation of it being dark and warm at the same time is always strange for me.  If it’s dark at home, you put your coat on.  You wouldn’t even ever test that.  If it’s dark - it’s cold.  But Mexico is different.  It’s dark and warm.  Your body just doesn’t expect it and heightens as a result.

Entering the hostel, I thought that the journey to México, I suppose, summed up the reasons why people get “shocked” with culture, and very reasons why I’m here and why I love to travel.

Progresso